Britons spent almost £1billion purchasing goods from unlicensed traders in public houses, new research from Halifax Home Insurance has revealed.

The research surveyed 1,019 adults and found that the equivalent of 5.6 million Brits admitted to purchasing goods illegally in licensed premises, and that 2.4 million people wouldn’t have been deterred from buying the goods if they appeared to have come from someone’s home.

Additionally, only one in five (22%) of those who purchased goods from unauthorised traders in licensed premises asked where the goods came from and more than half (58%) said they would not report someone they believed was selling goods illegally.

Vicky Emmott, senior underwriter at Halifax Home Insurance, said: “Millions of Britons may be unwittingly fuelling a cycle of theft by making it easy for burglars to resell their products in pubs and bars. People should be aware that this is not a victimless crime, their pursuit of a bargain is part of the reason burglary remains a widespread social problem. It is crucial they report suspicious traders operating in public houses and we would urge the public to only purchase goods from legitimate sources.”

The research also found that men are twice as likely (17%) as women (8%) to purchase goods illegally in bars, pubs and clubs. Men are also prepared to pay more than twice than women for the goods purchased, spending on average £202 for goods compared to £95 spent by women.